Week #5: Tunnel Vision by Susan Shaw

As opposed to the last book I read, Tunnel Vision by Susan Shaw was really good! I chose it because the summary in the inside cover sounded captivating, and I read it in just a few days. I didn’t want to spread it out over a week; the suspense all the way to the ending made me want to keep reading. 

The first couple pages of the book drew me into the plot right away. The protagonist, Liza, is walking home through a tunnel when she passes a group of men. When they start yelling at her, she runs to her home which is right outside the end of the tunnel. Her mom is working outside, and one of the men shoots a gun, presumably aiming for Liza but killing her mom instead. Along with Liza's character, the reader is left wondering, "Why are they trying to kill her? What are we missing?" The answer to those questions are what keep you reading!

The rest of the book is about Liza and her father on the run. They are tangled in an inescapable web, hiding in the witness protection program but never staying anywhere for too long because Liza’s red hair and tall, athletic stature keep giving her away. The media constantly features news stories on tv and articles in magazines and papers about the father and daughter who are missing, and they offer an award to anyone who finds them. All currents seem to be working against them, and as Liza is grieving the loss of her mother and hiding at the same time, she finds it difficult to trust anyone, as they may be working for “The Core,” or the group of men that’s hunting her.

The only problem I found with this fast-paced book was that it didn't have an obvious climax. It’s a lot of run, run, running, and a bit of a mystery as you (and Liza) try to figure out why The Core wants to kill her. The mystery unravels at the end, although I didn’t feel like there was enough closure to leave me satisfied. At least it’s not one of those predictable endings where everyone lives happily ever after. (Gag me, please.) That’s all I’ll say.

There’s an occasional difficult vocabulary word here and there, but it’s a pretty simple and straight-forward book with a lot of stream of consciousness narration. You may get annoyed that the action in the middle slows down a bit, but the fact that you’re constantly trying to figure out the mystery and learn what the conclusion will be keeps you reading.

Themes: hiding, grief, murder and crime, trust

Good for: reading for fun (doesn’t clearly/easily follow a plot development chart because it lacks a major climax, and Liza is not dynamic enough to really study her)

Would interest: boys and girls grades 8-11, reluctant readers (although it’s a bit longer than most books I’d recommend for them)

My grade: A-